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Q3. Self-perception vs God's perception


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God saw Gideon as a Mighty Warrior. Gideon saw himself as Weak and Small. Gideon only saw his limitations not his "un-limitations" that God could provide him. Like Gideon, we make excuses and when we do that we are not standing on God's promises. We see ourselves with our natural eye--weak and cowardly. Yet, we do well to remeber that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. God will often challenge us to get outside the box.

God never sends us in a battle that we are ill-equipped to fight and emerge victorious!

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God's answer to Gideon's self-image is, "But I will be with you." In other words, "You don't have to worry or fret because I AM that I AM has your back!"

Just like Gideon, we see ourselves as we are, not as God sees us. Who are we to tell God of our limitations? This brings to mind something I recently heard--"We should look to the future but also remember the past." God has worked so many things in my own life that, I know that I know, I could not have done on my own. Therefore, I trust Him to continue to work in my life.

Ephesians 3:20 says that God is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.

Philippians 4:13 says that we can do ALL things through Christ who strenghtens us.

Father,

I thank you that you do not see me as I see me. You knew us before we were formed in our mother's womb. It is your desire that we learn to completely lean and trust on you. Let us be pliable to the leading of the Holy Spirit. May we have a fresh anointing each day. Guid us into the paths of righteousness, We may be weak in small naturally but, we serve a Great God in whom nothing is impossble for me. HALLEJULLUJAH! AMEN!!

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:o God surprised Gideon by calling him " a mighty man of valor".

Inspite of Lords's assurance, Gideon still expresses his own assement that he is but a weakling.

But God's wisdom is beyond our compehension- we can only think like human beings.

We must have complete faith in Lord's plans and allow HIM to do HIS will in our lives.

We must pray, to be sensitve to soft nudgings of the Holy Spirit

Daniel

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:rolleyes: Gideon received the greatest assurance any man can get from God" I will be with you", in the face of humanly impossible assignment.

New Testament of the Lord's word is full of promises for us that our Lord is never going to forsake us and that we need not be afraid of men of this world. Heb 13:5-6.

Babara the first member to answer, has adequately reminded us almost all the promises/assurances God has given us in the New Testament.

I pray to God to be with me all the while to strenghen me and enable me to overcome the adversary of this world and live worthy of Christ, my Saviour. Daniel

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  • 4 months later...

God saw Gideon as HIS mighty warrior, just like the way HE sees all of us. We may have different gifts, skills and abilities but at the end, we are all God's warrior.

Most of the time we see ourselves the way we see others, or the way society sees us but not the way God sees us.

Allowing the Holy Spirit to work in our lives, being sensitive to HIM will accomplish God's will in our lives.

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The Lord answered "I will be with you.........." . John 15:5 .... apart from me you are nothing, no wonder my self image was so poor before I met Jesus.

Matthew 28:20, Col 1:11, Php 4:13, 1Cor 1:8, 1Cor 26-30, 1Cor 5:3Acts 1:8, Romans 8:26,

Father, I thank you so much for the priviledge you have given me to share your love to the lost. I pray for your spirit of boldness, courage and a compassionate heart , for wisdom and strength to all of us. May your Holy Spirit manifest in all of us you called to further your Kingdom. I glorify your name , in the name of your precious son Jesus, amen.

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God saw Gideon as a mighty warrior capable of saving Isreal, and Gideon saw himself as weak, "the least in his family". The Lord's perception is correct of course. He sees us in ways that no others, including ourselves see us. He knows everything there is to know about each and every one of us.

We need to trust in Him and we can accomplish anything with His help. We sometimes feel that we are not the right person for the job or that we will not be able to accomplish the mission because we are weak or not skilled enough to do it. He would not tell us to do something if He didn't already know that we could get it done. We just need to have full confidence in the Lord and ourselves and get the job done. We will never be what God wants us to be by feeling like we are weak or not up to the task.

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Together they will strike down the Midianites. Not Gideon alone or the Lord alone, TOGETHER.

(Phil 4:13) We can do all things in Christ who strenghtens us.

Just pray to the Lord to be with you in all you do. Do not let your mind tell you that you are too weak or uncapable of doing the job. Together with the Lord you can do anything.

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  • 2 weeks later...

How did God see Gideon?

God saw Gideon as a might warrior.

How did Gideon see himself?

Gideon saw himself as a person who is a low life. His family clan as the lowest of all the clans. His family as the lowest in the clan. And himself as the lowest in his family.

How can our own self-perception prevent us from becoming what God has made us to be?

We can put our own self done, emotional, and internally. We allow ourself to put ourself down, to listen to the inner voice inside of us. When we do something wrong, we get mad at ourself. We don't encourage ourself. God wants us to encourage ourself. Not put ourself down.

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What is God's answer to Gideon's self-image?

God's answer was an encouragement to Gideon's self-image.

Does this spiritual principle apply to our lives as Christians?

Yes, when I doubt my self-image, God shows me encouragement or has someone encourage me when I feel my self-image is low.

Can I recall any New Testament passages that teach the same principle?

Ro. 12:3; Heb. 4:16,6:10; I Thes. 3:13

What is an appropriate prayer to pray in light of what God has taught you from this passage?

Father, thank you for showing me what I am capable of. Give me the strength to conquer the test You want me to pass.

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God's answer to Gideon's self-image was that He was with him and he will be victorious. This spritiual principle does apply to our lives as Christians. An appropriate prayer to pray in light of what God has taught me from this passage is to submit to his calling with complete faith and to rely on his strength to accomplish His will.

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Guest lynnmparker

God's answer to Gideon's self-image: You're not alone, "Surely I will be with you", sayest the Lord.

Yes, this does apply to us as Christians today. God said that He would be with us always, even until the end of the earth.

New Testament Scripture: Luke 11:9-10 "And I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and yo"u will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.

An appropriate prayer: God, grant me courage through any and all circumstances. When it feels as though the whole world is against me, your presence will assure me that I can defeat the enemy.

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  • 1 month later...

God knew Gideon would be a great instrument for accomplishing His purpose, but Gideon thought of himself as useless. When Gideon or ourselves can't see our value, we limit what we can do and worse, we limit God to our level. We must remember that "With God all things are possible." and that means being able to use our talents that we don't even see in ourselves.

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  • 2 months later...

God saw Gideon as a mighty warrior. Gideon sees himself as weak and the least in the family. Gods perception is most accurate as God knows what we are capable of. when we see only our limitations and weaknessess we fail to see how God could work through us. this has taught me a very powerful lesson as i never take part in a bible study that i go to i just listen, now i will try and participate. i have felt backward in the past in that i do not know or understand large sections of the bible. it is very easy to feel intimidated by more knowledgeable people especially if you have been shot down in the past.

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God says " i will be with you and you will strike down all the Midianities together" God is a God of promises and He always keeps His word, so when He says I will be with you always that is what He means. We need to hold onto this promise when life gets tough.

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God saw in Gideon a potential leader, someone who would listen to God, and therefore could become all God wanted him to be, namely a mighty man of valour!

Gideon saw himself as a small man in the least important family in the unimportant tribe of Manasseh, and having no likelihood of leading the Israelites against the Midianites, not the ability to do this.

God's perception is most accurate because He made us and knows what He put into us.

However we are unable to fulfil that potential until we completely trust, obey and commit to God, giving up the opinions of others and the ways of people around us, seeking only His face.

Self perception :unsure: is inaccurate and totally blind to what God can do in us.

Self perception considers only its own (unrecognisedly God-given) abilities, B) not the potential of a partnership with God as head. :rolleyes:

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God's answer to Gideon was "I shall be with you and you will defeat!", as simple as that!

When we open our heart to God, as Gideon did, even though he could not anticipate the result, things change dramatically. God is now in control, and nothing is the same! Everything is new again!

Every healing that took place in the New Testament is a testament to what happens when people apply to God, everything is new again! When Peter submitted to Jesus on the subject of fishing, (Peter's profession), he caught more fish than ever before! When children submit to parents, when people forgive their enemies, when husbands and wives submit to each other in Christ, everything works, God can perform His miracles in their lives. When Paul placed the storm in God's hands, there was a miracle of survival on the ship, and when they were landed on Malta the miracles continued with joy. When the disciples prayed about Peter in prison, they could hardly believe that he was there, standing on their doorstep! Halleluia to our God who loves to be invited into every part of our lives.

The most appropriate prayer must be one of thanks to our God who NEVER LEAVES US OR FORSAKES US. As we continually bring our affairs to Him, we will continually have amazing things to thank and praise Him for. "Thank you Father that you continually bring your light into the darkness of our lives, and the darkness cannot overcome the light." :rolleyes::D:)

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Q4. What is God's answer to Gideon's self-image? (6:16)

God told Gideon that He would be with him, and together they would strike down all the Midianites.

Does this spiritual principle apply to our lives as Christians?

Yes it does. God said He would never forsake us.

Can you recall any New Testament passages that teach the same principle?

Matthew 28: 20

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  • 2 weeks later...

God sees Gideon as a "mighty man of valor". God sees Gideon's potential. Gideon, on the other hand, sess himself as weak and ineffective, unable to do what God wants him to do. Gideon suffers from low self-esteem. Others see his answer as humility. I don't. Humility does not blame God the way Gideon does in verses 13. Anyway, Gideon's view of himself is the total opposite of how God sees him. As long as we operate from our view of ourselves we are limited BIG TIME! This hit me like a ton of bricks, because I realized that our own self-perception can keep us in poverty, keep us in fear, and keep us in sin. WOW!

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God tells Gideon "I will be with you." This spiritual principle is that with God we can do anything.

In the NT Philippians 4:13 declares "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." God is the strength and He strengthens my strength. He enables. He empowers. It's all on Him.

PRAYER: LORD, first, forgive me of willful disobedience. I have put other things before You, and what I want more than anything is for You to be exalted in my life. Father, help to live this life based on your image of me, and not my image of myself. Sometimes my image of me is that I'm stronger or weaker than You know I am. Help me to draw on the fact, according to Your word, that I can do all things through Christ and the strength He gives me makes me mighty through Him to glorify Him in all that I say and do. Amen

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  • 2 weeks later...

What is God's answer to Gideon's self-image? (6:16) Does this spiritual principle apply to our lives as Christians? Can you recall any New Testament passages that teach the same principle? What is an appropriate prayer to pray in light of what God has taught you from this passage?

Gideon could not see past what he saw in himself. We do this all the time. We cannot see who we are in God. In God we are mighty. There are times when we only see what is against us and are unable to see God is right next to us. Then, we need God to touch our lives in very touching ways in order for us to realize God's got us in his hands.

Recently I have been studying about the mind and positive thinking that stems in the truths of the Bible. Many verses tell how we are mighty in God. As we make these verses part of our thinking we believe in them and act accordingly. One of those verses is I could do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

An appropriate prayer when we just think we are not capable of surviving our circumstances is:

Lord, today I cannot face my situation, I feel helpless, I cannot see you though I know you are there, help me to believe you will help me to overcome in your name, give me the strength to face and overcome this situation, help me to do right and according to your will. In Christ's name I pray.

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How did God see Gideon? (6:12) How did Gideon see himself? (6:15). Whose self-perception is most accurate? How can our own self-perception prevent us from becoming what God has made us to be?

God saw Gideon as a man of strength as Gideon saw himself as being weak. God's perception is the most accurate, God's sees us just as we are, he sees our weaknesses and our strengths.

What we think of ourselves guide us to act in ways that are not most appropriate at times. A self-perception that is incorrect help us see ourselves as what we aren't, we may see ourselves as more than what we are or we could see ourselves as lesser than what we are. Both perceptions are wrong and misleads us. We need to ask God to lead us the right way, we need to ask God to lead us to be who he wants us to be and to do the things he wants us to do. We also need to pray to God to help us not to have a wrong image of ourselves. Having a wrong image of ourselves lead us to try out doing many incorrect ministries that lead us to feel uncomfortable, discouraged and that bring our self esteem down.

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  • 2 months later...

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